This study explores faculty theories of service-learning as a teaching methodology in higher education. While there has been considerable increase in the understanding of how service-learning positively impacts students, there is a shortage of research on faculty experiences utilizing service-learning pedagogy. Because it is known that faculty involvement and commitment is essential to implementing groundbreaking forms of curricula and pedagogy, this research seeks to better understand faculty perspectives of campus community collaboration in service-learning partnerships. The study investigated faculty engaged in service-learning and used a multiple case study design involving descriptive qualitative methods rooted in faculty perspectives utilizing constant comparative analysis and coding in the tradition of grounded theory. Data consisted of interviews, course materials, and documents related to community placement protocol at one large Pacific-Northwest university. Findings across five research questions, which supported previous studies, established that faculty utilizing service-learning pedagogy are motivated by their adherence to values of social justice, individual awareness of positive student outcomes, and dedication to civic responsibility by meeting community defined needs through educational practices. Two new findings, which can augment the research literature, are (a) the perceived role that institutionally supported outreach to the community could play in restoring public trust, exhibiting genuine awareness of community need, and benefiting the overall credibility of the institutional mission and (b) the identification of faculty tacit theories of why community partners fade away during the student placement and perceived best practices for addressing the problem. Faculty’s identification of perceived barriers to implementing and sustaining service-learning pedagogy supported previous research and suggested a new finding that while excellence in pedagogical practices existed within the institution, lack of a centrally supported mechanism for collaboration may have thwarted growth of innovative and beneficial strategies. Research-to-practice suggestions include prospective policy implications for faculty who utilize service-learning in courses or would like to cultivate the professional potential to include a scholarship of engagement into their teaching strategies. Faculty theories of best practices and policy improvements for service-learning pedagogy delineated in the study have potential utility for entities who develop, initiate, organize, and support innovative campus community collaboration.

Thesis (MTech (Human Resource Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2007 / South Africa is a country, which is rich in history and has a young democracy, which continues to evolve. The new democratic Government has envisioned a Higher Education (HE) system that would be accessible to all who wants to further their tertiary studies. The White Paper on the Transformation of Higher Education of 1997 reaffirms the purpose of HE with regard to social responsibility, since it incorporates community engagement as a scholarly activity, which places emphasis on developing students as future citizens of South Africa. HE can produce different forms of community engagement, which include but is not limited to distance education, community based research, participatory action research, professional community service and service learning. The Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) accepts that South Africa has social and economic challenges, as any young democracy has, and incorporates Service Learning as a mechanism, which may contribute to the solutions of such challenges. In this research study, emphasis is placed on Service Learning as a teaching methodology to enhance students’ interpersonal and diversity skills, while it also develops their professional learning experience, as well as their corporate social responsibility. Students are encouraged to reflect on their learning experiences, both academically and personally. The literature survey reveals that South African HE is a member of the Talloires Declaration (2005) that unites universities globally to a uniform framework on the civic role and social responsibilities of HE. South African HE has partnerships with both the United States Fordand Kellogg Foundations in order to promote, develop and create awareness regarding social responsibility.

Thesis (MTech (Tourism and Hospitality Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / Community engagement in universities of technology is evolving to become a game-changer in addressing the economic challenges of the country (Erasmus, 2005:4). Service learning (SL) as a form of community engagement is promoted in higher education, as a learning paradigm. Conway, Amel and Gerwien (2009:238) encourage enquiry into the benefits of this pedagogy and the partnerships involved, as faculties curriculate and adopt the service learning model into current programmes (Lazarus, Erasmus, Hendricks, Nduna & Slamat, 2008:60-61). The SL project of the Tourism Management Department at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) is distinctive in design from the generic social-change focussed projects within Universities of Technology (UoTs). Its outcomes are based on the development of business plans for small and medium enterprises for implementation. The assessment of this interactive learning process was essential to determine whether it yielded any positive change in the participants. Thus the aim of the study is to determine the success or otherwise of the service learning project, so as to ensure that the small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) community and students benefit from the Tourism Management project. The study sample included nine small and medium tourism entrepreneurs (SMTEs) and 178 third year tourism management students. From the sample two SMTEs participated in one-on-one interviews and six students participated in a focus-group interview. Action research was undertaken for this study, and census sampling was adopted to collect quantitative and qualitative data from project participants. The ATLAS.ti 7 data analysis programme was employed to process the qualitative data, and SPSS 22.0 software was utilised to develop frequency tables from the quantitative data. All data was triangulated to obtain conclusions. Fifty-two percent (52%) of student participants learnt leadership skills, with 64% indicating essential benefits on business skills. Company visions were shared throughout the collaborative process, and 76% of SMTE responses, directed to the students’ solutions, being highly innovative for their businesses; and these were implemented to improve business processes. The findings of the study attested to the SL model improving reciprocal learning, and having positive benefits for all partners involved. In continuing the essential dialogue on implementation of SL in higher education, sustainable partnerships in SL projects are essential to ensure continued positive results. The majority of participants responded positively to a willingness to participate in a similar project, which is a positive indicator of the benefits of the project. Implications for future studies point towards a need for continued monitoring of growth performance in the participating small and medium enterprises.

M.Ed. / This qualitative research essay reports on a complementary programme, Service Learning, to the current Higher Diploma in Education (H.D.E-postgraduate) curricula at tertiary institutions. It originated from my personal experience of the H.D.E.(postgraduate) training, my experience as educator and the policy documents of the South African Government on Higher Education since 1995. My idea for the investigation is grounded in the first White Paper for Higher Education (1995) and the Norms and Standards of Teacher Education presented by the Committee of Teacher Education Policy (1996). Both these policies advocate innovative, holistic and reflective teacher education training. The title of the essay: "The cultivation of educational knowledge, skills, values and attitudes, through Service Learning, for H.D.E. (postgraduate) students encapsulates the framework of my thinking about teacher education". The investigation commenced with a document analysis followed by a literature study concerning H.D.E. (PIG) curricula and Service Learning. The basic data analysis was used to integrate the relevant literature with the professional ideas of the interviewees. Ethnographic interviews with educational leaders brought all diverting ideas together, which culminated in the findings of the investigation. The justification of the study lies in the question whether one year of training as an educator is holistic and foreseeable enough for the challenging educational environment. The findings of the study advocate Service Learning as an indispensable complementary programme to the H.D.E.(P/G) Curricula. The findings mostly enlighten the advantages of Service Learning Programmes through the eyes of the educational leaders interviewed, and present to the reader the possibilities in teacher education.

The purpose of this study was to inform global citizenship practice as a higher education (HE) agenda by comparing retrospective experiences of a range of community engagement (CE) partners, including the often silent voices of non-researcher partners. HE-CE aims to contribute to social justice as it constructs and transfers new knowledge from the perspectives of a wide range of CE-partners. This qualitative secondary analysis study was framed theoretically by the transformative-emancipatory paradigm and meta-theoretically by phenomenology. Existing case data, generated on retrospective experiences of CE-partners in a long-term CE-partnership, were conveniently sampled to analyse and compare a range of CE-experiences (parents of student-clients (n = 12: females 10, males 2), teachers from the partner rural school (n = 18: females 12, males 6), student-educational psychology clients (n = 31: females 14, males 17), academic service learning (ASL) students (n = 20: females 17, males 3), and researchers (n = 12: females 11, males 1). Existing data sources included verbatim transcriptions of (i) audio-recorded Participatory Reflection and Action (PRA)-directed group sessions (parents, teachers, student-clients), (ii) telephonic interviews (ASL-students, researchers) and semi-structured interviews (ASL-students); as well as rural school context observation data documented textually (audio-visual recordings and photographs) and textually (field notes). A significant insight from this study is that a range of CE-partners experience similar benefits and challenges when a university and rural school partner. Whereas all CE-partners experience HE-CE as beneficial for human capital development, they all experience that HE-CE is challenged by the structural disparity between a rural context and operational miscommunication. CE-partners with higher education levels experienced that the HE partner is an agent that facilitates knowledge generation. These CE-partners indicated that both academic researchers and non-researchers should be valued as equal knowledge co-generator partners. CE-partners within a rural school had expectations of material gain as part of their experience of participating in this CE-partnership. CE-partners involved in educational psychology (ASL) experienced connectedness and support as a result of participating in the FLY intervention. These CE-partners also experienced FLY relationships as a great platform for establishing bonds, whilst learning from peers. I theorise the Progressive Global Citizenship conceptual framework as a guide that points towards boundless engagement in the era of globalisation. This suggests that HE-CE should focus on innovative interventions that have support structures aimed at establishing connections across socio-economic, cultural, racial and academic backgrounds. Therefore, I propose that HE should make a concerted effort to enhance insight, awareness, reflection, exploration and develop critical consciousness among global citizens. In my view, this calls for innovation that moves away from traditional practices in global citizenship. HE should strive to partner with many role-players as an alternative way of broadening the scope towards understanding and enriching CE interventions. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Educational Psychology / PhD / Unrestricted

Service is a powerful tool for the development of youth. It transforms the young person from a passive recipient to an active provider. When combined with formal education, service becomes a method of learning known as "Service Learning." Service learning enables teachers to employ a variety of effective teaching strategies that emphasize student-centered, interactive, experiential education.

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